As South Korea basks in the afterglow of its second successful Olympic Games, it is important to note that another, equally special event is taking place soon after: the Paralympics.
The first official Paralympics were held in Rome in 1960 with about 400 athletes competing from 23 countries in Summer Games such as track and field. The original idea behind the Paralympics was to honor and commemorate war veterans who had been wounded in combat.
Unknown to most Koreans, the 1988 Seoul Olympics were an important milestone in Paralympic history, being the first time that the Paralympics were held immediately after the regular Olympics using the same facilities in the same host city. Now, all Paralympics are held in this way, immediately after each summer and winter Olympics.
Since 1988, the Paralympics have expanded considerably. The last Summer Paralympics in Rio had over 4,300 athletes from 159 countries competing in 528 events. The Winter Paralympics in PyeongChang will have 550 athletes from 42 countries competing in about 50 events. The latter may look like a small number, relatively speaking, but it is not when you consider the regular Winter Olympics consisted of only 102 events.
In many respects, the Paralympics are often viewed as the highest demonstration of human achievement. Athletes with disabilities continue to redefine and push the limitations of the human body, showing us the power of courage and force of will. But perhaps more important is the courage to push and redefine the limitations of our prejudice.
It is no secret that persons with disabilities are generally not always well-received around the world. Despite its status as a developed and modern country, South Korea still struggles, at times, to be inclusive to its disabled citizens. It is estimated that about 6 percent (3 million) of the Korean population consists of individuals with disabilities, and yet they continue to suffer injustice and discrimination.
The most obvious is related to employment opportunities. Although the Korean government mandates companies, by law, to fill 3 percent of their workforce with disabled people, the national average is only about half of that.
Falling short of the quota requires larger companies to pay a fine -- a penalty most have thus far been willing to pay, driven in part by the beliefs that disabled workers have lower productivity and reduce brand value. This is despite a wealth of evidence that careful job placement could result in disabled workers being just as productive while also raising brand value.
Linked with employment is the plight of poverty. Despite a number of government programs that provide assistance, disabled people in Korea are about three times more likely to be living in poverty. For most families, the monetary value of government benefits simply is not enough. Most programs also discourage productivity by discontinuing support if the disabled individual works to earn additional income, creating a ridiculous situation where disabled people are held hostage to essentially do nothing.
For most host countries, the Paralympics have been a time to focus attention on the disabled minority. In many cases, the attention has helped to motivate important reforms and changes in public opinion. A 2010 study published by the University of British Columbia showed that the 2010 Vancouver Paralympics had a strong effect in raising awareness of disability issues, with 23 percent of employers saying they felt more likely to hire a disabled worker after watching the games. Hopefully, Korea can again set a milestone for change as the world watches.
The PyeongChang Paralympics will run for 10 days from March 9-18. Oh, and tickets are cheap too, averaging about 20,000 won ($19) per event. I hope to see you there.
Justin Fendos Justin Fendos is a professor at Dongseo University in South Korea and the associate director of the Tan School at Fudan University in Shanghai. -- Ed.
